RachelWalker

Careless in Red - Elizabeth George, 29 Aug 2013

I haven't read an Elizabeth George novel in years. In fact, since With No One As Witness in 2005. I can't remember why I stopped - I just recall not being interested in the slightest in the book that came after that, and never picked up the baton again. The point of mentioning this is to illustrate that I came to Careless in Red with only vague expectations and impressions of what an Elizabeth George novel is like. And this book more than fulfilled them.

I cannot understand the opprobrium this book's received, to be honest. To me, it recalls quite firmly the majority of the other Elizabeth George novels I've read. It has many characters, all interesting for the most part, all… Read more

Strange Shores - Arnaldur Indridason, 29 Aug 2013

Indridason's crime novels are among the very very best police procedural novels being written anywhere in the world. He's of the Rankin/Connelly class, if not better. For my mind, he is certainly more delicate and subtle, two qualities I prize very highly. His books ache with longing, sadness, loneliness, desolation: the Icelandic landscape, culture and climate are absolutely the perfect fit his stylistic approach to a crime novel. Not that the books are depressing, as Indridason's touch is too light for that. They are more... considered, thoughtful. This one is no exception, and is perhaps the most reflective of all of them so far - this is the one where Detective Erlendur's preoccupations… Read more

MaddAddam - Margaret Atwood, 28 Aug 2013

Due to the gap in the publication of each of the latter volumes of this trilogy, I've had a struggle each time to recall the events of the previous book(s). And the introduction in this book didn't help all that much either! I'd love to read them all at once.

Whatever, it does not take long to become fully reimmersed in Atwood's world, and to catch again the wave of the previous books. From then, the plot moves you along swiftly and the book clips past. It's exciting, engrossing, interesting, etc. But of course it is, it's Margaret Atwood, and if you can't trust her to tell a tell then what can you do.

What this book needs to answer, for me, is the question, does this… Read more